After searching for celebrations for AAPI Heritage Month and finding none, we decided to make our own — and sparked a citywide tradition.

In 2021, after the Atlanta spa shootings, a group of us were searching for Asian American spaces. With AAPI Heritage Month coming up, we expected to find events or activities, but Cincinnati had little public acknowledgment of the month. We decided to make something happen.

Our early efforts — public art, community collaborations, and community events — grew into AAPI Heritage Month Cincinnati, an initiative to advocate and promote AAPI Heritage Month celebrations each May.

Part outreach, part marketing, and part cultural catalyst, AAPI Heritage Month Cincinnati launched an official city resolution, established annual celebrations at FC Cincinnati and the Cincinnati Public Library, and inspired AAPI Heritage Month Memphis and AAPI Heritage Month 518 in upstate NY.